Car Review: 2011 Subaru Legacy

Jeff Plimmer test drove the 2011 Subaru Legacy and was impressed with the interior space, which was adequate for his large dog and golf clubs.

PHOTO: Dean Bicknell, Calgary Herald

2011 Subaru Legacy.

PHOTO: Dean Bicknell, Calgary Herald

2011 Subaru Legacy.

PHOTO: Dean Bicknell, Calgary Herald

By Robert K. Rooney, Calgary Herald

Originally published: July 26, 2011

SMALL

MEDIUM

LARGE

If you look into the corporate ancestry of Subaru, the Japanese car manufacturer, you find what was once one of Imperial Japan’s main aircraft manufacturers. Perhaps it is that DNA that has kept Subaru from becoming just another manufacturer of cookie-cutter automobiles.

Since 1976, Subarus have been sold in Canada. Ever since then, the brand has had a reputation for going its own way technologically as well as one for often, shall we say, distinctive styling.

While most of the industry sees only the in-line and “V” engine configurations as worthy of development, Subarus – and some Porsches – offer “flat” or “boxer” configuration engines. Perhaps Subaru’s bestknown technical feature is all-wheel drive, something the company offered earlier than its competitors and something that is available throughout the Subaru product line.

The latest cutting-edge innovation to be adopted by the company is a continuously-variable transmission.

The Subaru Legacy is now in its fifth generation of development. Originally introduced in 1989, it is a mid-sized sedan aimed at cutting Subaru a slice of the very popular family car market. Since that market is inhabited by first-class offerings from virtually every manufacturer in the world, the Legacy has definitely had its work cut out for it.

According to Jeff Plimmer, he was aware that his test vehicle – a 2011 Subaru Legacy 2.5i sedan – would have all-wheel drive, but the car’s styling surprised him by being much more mainstream than he expected.

He particularly noticed how low the front end sits, and found himself wondering if lack of ground clearance might compromise the excellent performance in snow provided by the AWD system.

“I’m not fanatical, but I like cars,” Plimmer says, and a review of the retired police officer’s history of car ownership bears that out, revealing a tasty assortment that includes a ’68 Firebird, a ’73 ‘Vette and a half-dozen BMW Z3s.

At present, the Plimmer household vehicles are a Lexus RX 400h and a Nissan Murano.

“I’m into the luxury vehicles, now, at this stage of my life,” Plimmer explains.

“I was looking for something with at least a 350 pound tongue weight. Accommodating a big dog was the biggest thing I looked at.

“I have a big dog. He comes everywhere with us,” Plimmer says.

Not surprisingly, the Legacy’s ability to look after his canine companion was one of the first things he checked out.

Although the terms of his test meant he couldn’t actually put the pooch in the car, he says, “I was looking at it and thinking, ‘Well, if a guy wanted to put a dog in the back, how would those fold-down seats work?’ They were pretty good. It would have worked nicely, I think.”

Our test vehicle was a base-model 2.5i with the CVT the only upgrade.

“There were no power seats,” Plimmer says. “There was nothing like that, but it was easy enough to get yourself into a position that was comfortable. It had a mostly black interior, but it had sort of a brushed metal highlight trim that reminded me of a BMW. It just had a high-end look to the interior. It was a pleasant surprise.”

A golfing expedition proved that the Legacy had room for more than just a driver and his dog.

“Everybody had lots of headroom and legroom,” Plimmer reports. “Everything was good. It was really quite impressive, actually, the amount of room there was for four guys.”

The foursome were able to get all their bags of clubs into the Legacy’s cargo space, too.

Taking the Legacy out to Bragg Creek was Plimmer’s chance to test the car’s highway performance.

“That 2.5 litre (engine) – you can’t say it’s overpowered, but it’s not underpowered, either. It never felt underpowered at all,” he states.

Inside, he says, “for a mid-level car, you can’t call it ultra-quiet, but there was not any excessive road noise. I thought it was all good. Around town, the suspension was pretty good. It handled the potholes pretty nicely. It was tight.”

The Legacy’s low groundclearance at the front came up again in town, as Plimmer points out that it would be easy to damage the front fascia while parking.

Plimmer also found the transmission, which comes with paddle shifters, to be useful since he was “able to slide it into manual mode if you wanted the extra zip – to play with it a little bit.”

Asked about his likes and dislikes, Plimmer simply observes, “There was nothing earth-shattering either on the positive or the negative side. It was very decent.”

Having driven both Accords and Camrys in the past, Plimmer can form a pretty good notion of how the Legacy stacks up to two of its toughest competitors.